Modular, high-throughput air treatment system

ABSTRACT

Air treatment modules, systems and methods for removing contaminants from indoor air are provided. Device embodiments may include one or more air inlets, one or more air outlets and a plurality of inserts which each include at least one adsorbent material. The inserts may be arranged separate from each other to form a plurality of substantially parallel air flow paths between the one or more air inlets and one or more air outlets. The adsorbent material may be arranged for regeneration within the air treatment module using thermal swing desorption and/or pressure swing desorption. Related systems, methods and articles of manufacture are also described.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/221,961, filed Mar. 21, 2014, titled “Modular, High-Throughput AirTreatment System,” which is in turn a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/024,214, of the same title and filed on Feb. 9,2011 (and patented as U.S. Pat. No. 8,690,999). The disclosures of bothapplications are herein by reference in their entireties.

FIELD

The subject matter described herein relates to removing contaminantsfrom indoor air using regenerable adsorbent materials included withinone or more air treatment modules of a scalable air treatment system.

BACKGROUND

Heating, ventilation and/or air conditioning (“HVAC”) systems are commonand indeed essential in most, if not all, modern buildings, structuresand other human-occupied spaces. HVAC systems seek to maintain theindoor air quality (“IAQ”) at an acceptable level within such spaces byproviding comfortable and healthy conditions in terms of airtemperature, humidity, composition and cleanliness. HVAC systemsconstitute a significant part of a building's energy budget,particularly in extreme climates.

The heating, ventilating and air conditioning functions of HVAC systemscooperate to maintain thermal comfort, acceptable IAQ levels andpressure relationships between two or more human-occupied spaces withina building or other structure. HVAC systems, for example, may circulateair through the rooms of a building using an air handling unit, whichmechanically forces air to flow through a network of ducts installedwithin the building, while adjusting air temperature and humidity tomaintain comfortable conditions. While these typical HVAC systems haveone or more air filters for capturing small particles and/or vapors,more thorough treatment is well-beyond the capability of theseconventional filters. As a result, to maintain the IAQ of a building atan acceptable level, traditional HVAC systems exhaust some fraction ofthe contaminated indoor circulating air outside the building as exhaustair and replace it with some amount of fresh outside air, also known as“makeup air”. This process of changing or replacing indoor circulatingair with makeup air is done primarily to counteract the accumulation oforganic and inorganic contaminants created by human occupants, machines(e.g., computers or copiers), cleaning agents, building materials and/orpesticides, which gradually compromise the quality and safety of theindoor air. Removing such contaminants directly from the indoor air,rather than replacing the indoor air with makeup air from outside abuilding, may reduce the energy required to cool, dehumidify and/or heatmakeup air or eliminate the need to use makeup air altogether.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present disclosure may be directed to a practical,modular and scalable system for removing contaminants from thecirculating air in an HVAC system, utilizing regenerable adsorbentmaterials and an adsorption-desorption cycle. Treating large volumes ofindoor air having low concentrations of organic and inorganiccontaminants requires bringing large volumes of adsorbent materials intointimate contact with large volumes of circulating indoor air. It may beadvantageous to treat large volumes of circulating indoor air withoutrequiring large pressure gradients and using minimal power and energyconsumption. It may also be advantageous to use air treatment systemsthat are scalable and relatively compact in size so as to be readilyinstalled in existing buildings by human operators. Furthermore,different buildings may have different air flow requirements andcontaminant levels. To efficiently and practically manufacture anddeploy air treatment systems adaptable to a wide variety of buildings,it may be advantageous to provide a modular air treatment system designbased on a relatively limited set of standard products that are easilymanufactured and combine to provide scalable solutions for differentbuilding sizes and air quality requirements. It may also be advantageousto make air treatment systems that are easily integrated with existingHVAC systems rather than replacing existing infrastructure.

The present disclosure is thus directed to air treatment modules forremoving contaminants from indoor air that may include one or more airinlets, one or more air outlets and a plurality of inserts that may eachinclude at least one adsorbent material, where the inserts may bearranged separate from each other to form a plurality of substantiallyparallel air flow paths between the one or more air inlets and one ormore air outlets. In some embodiments, the at least one adsorbentmaterial may be arranged for regeneration within the air treatmentmodule using at least one of thermal swing desorption and pressure swingdesorption. In some embodiments, the plurality of inserts may bearranged in a sheet-like form. Some embodiments may include a supportframe having one or more structural support members for supporting theplurality of inserts, wherein the one or more air inlets and one or moreair outlets are formed by the support frame and the plurality ofinserts. Some embodiments may include an air intake plenum adjacent anintake side of the air treatment module and in communication with theone or more air inlets and an air outtake plenum adjacent an outtakeside of the air treatment module and in communication with the one ormore air outlets.

Embodiments of the air treatment module may also be configured forincorporation within a heating, ventilation and/or air conditioningsystem. The air treatment module may include one or more valves thatcontrol the amount of indoor air that flows between the air treatmentmodule and the heating, ventilating and/or air conditioning system. Insome embodiments, the one or more valves may substantially stop indoorair from flowing between the air treatment module and the heating,ventilation and/or air conditioning system. In other embodiments, theone or more valves may be used to divert only a portion of the totalamount of indoor within the heating, ventilation and/or air conditioningsystem into the air treatment module. In some embodiments, the airtreatment module may involve positioning the plurality of inserts withinthe support frame at an angle relative to the plurality of substantiallyparallel air flow paths between the one or more air inlets and one ormore air outlets. The air treatment module may also have one or more airinlets and one or more air outlets of the support frame that are offsetfrom each other to force indoor air flowing between the one or more airinlets and one or more air outlets to flow through the at least oneadsorbent material. In some embodiments, the at least one adsorbentmaterial may be selected from the group consisting of zeolite, activatedcharcoal, silica gel, porous alumina and metal-organic-frameworkmaterials and/or may remove carbon dioxide or volatile organic compoundsfrom the indoor air.

Embodiments of the air treatment modules of the present disclosure mayalso include a support frame that includes an inlet side and an outletside, where one or more air inlets are formed in the inlet side and oneor more air outlets are formed in the outlet side. The one or more airinlets and one or more air outlets may be formed adjacent to each otheralong one side of the support frame. In some embodiments, the airtreatment module may be positioned downstream of a central cooling unitof the heating, ventilation and/or air conditioning system. In someembodiments, the air treatment module may include sensors to measuretemperature, pressure, flow rate and/or gas composition.

The present disclosure may also relate to air treatment systems forremoving contaminants from indoor air. These systems may include aplurality of air treatment modules which may each have one or more airinlets, one or more air outlets and one or more inserts. The inserts mayeach include at least one adsorbent material, according to someembodiments. The at least one adsorbent material may be arranged forregeneration within each of the plurality of air treatment modules usingat least one of thermal swing desorption and pressure swing desorption.In some system embodiments, the plurality of air treatment modules maybe aligned adjacent to each other and in communication with a commoninlet plenum and a common outlet plenum and the one or more inserts ofthe plurality of air treatment modules may form a plurality ofsubstantially parallel air flow paths. In some embodiments, the one ormore inserts may be arranged in a sheet-like form. Some systemembodiments may include arranging the plurality of air treatment modulesin a vertical stack and/or horizontally. The air treatment systems ofthe present disclosure may be positioned within a commercial,residential, industrial, military or public building, depending on theparticular embodiment.

The present disclosure also contemplates methods for removingcontaminants from indoor air. The methods may include providing aplurality of air treatment modules, where each air treatment module mayhave one or more air inlets, one or more air outlets and one or moreinserts which may each include at least one adsorbent material. The atleast one adsorbent material may be arranged for regeneration withineach of the plurality of air treatment modules using at least one ofthermal swing desorption and pressure swing desorption. The methods mayalso include arranging the plurality of air treatment modules adjacentto each other, wherein the one or more inserts of the plurality of airtreatment modules may form a plurality of substantially parallel airflow paths. The methods may further include directing the flow of theindoor air from an air intake plenum into the one or more air inlets ofthe plurality of air treatment modules, through one or more of theplurality of substantially parallel air flow paths, through one or moreof the at least one adsorbent material and through the one or more airoutlets into an air outtake plenum. In some embodiments, the air inletplenum and air outlet plenum may be configured for communication with aheating, ventilation and/or air conditioning system. In someembodiments, the one or more inserts may be arranged in a sheet-likeform.

The details of one or more variations of the subject matter describedherein are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the descriptionbelow. Other features and advantages of the subject matter describedherein will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from theclaims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, show certain aspects of the subject matterdisclosed herein and, together with the description, help explain someof the principles associated with the disclosed embodiments. In thedrawings,

FIG. 1 shows an HVAC system according to some embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2a shows an embodiment of an air treatment module according to someembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2b shows a plurality of the air treatment modules of FIG. 2astacked vertically according to some embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of an air treatment module according to someembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 4a and 4b show an embodiment of an air treatment module accordingto some embodiments of the present disclosure. FIG. 4a shows the inletend of the air treatment module and FIG. 4b shows the outlet end of theair treatment module.

FIGS. 5a and 5b show an embodiment of an air treatment module accordingto some embodiments of the present disclosure. FIG. 5a shows the inletend of the air treatment module and FIG. 5b shows the outlet end of theair treatment module.

FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of an air treatment module according to someembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 shows an arrangement of a plurality of air treatment modulesaccording to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 shows an arrangement of a plurality of air treatment modulesaccording to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 shows a plurality of air treatment modules stacked vertically andin fluid communication with a common inlet plenum and a common outletplenum, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 shows a plurality of air treatment modules stacked verticallyand in fluid communication with a common inlet plenum and a commonoutlet plenum, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 shows a plurality of air treatment modules arranged horizontallyand in fluid communication with a common inlet plenum and a commonoutlet plenum, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 shows an embodiment of an air treatment module according to someembodiments of the present disclosure.

Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Devices, systems and methods for removing contaminants from indoor airusing high-capacity, regenerable adsorbent materials arranged in acompact, parallel configuration are provided herein. Some embodiments ofthe present disclosure may be directed to modular and scalable airtreatment modules having one or more removable inserts including one ormore adsorbent materials. The air treatment modules may be verticallystacked and/or horizontally arranged to form a compact air treatmentsystem for providing a large surface area for removing contaminants fromlarge volumes of circulating indoor air. Embodiments of the presentdisclosure may provide air treatment systems that improve indoor airquality using high-capacity adsorbent materials, such as for examplemolecular sieves for removing contaminants, like carbon dioxide (CO₂).

FIG. 1 shows a basic configuration of an HVAC system 100. In someembodiments, the system 100 may be located within a building, vehicle orother structure and configured for heating, ventilating and/or airconditioning a human-occupied space 110. Some embodiments of the system100 may be used for heating, ventilating and/or air conditioning aplurality of human-occupied spaces 110 within a building, vehicle orother structure. A building according to the present disclosure mayinclude without limitation an office building, residential building,store, mall, hotel, hospital, restaurant, airport, train station and/orschool. A vehicle according to the present disclosure may includewithout limitation an automobile, ship, train, plane or submarine.

In some embodiments, the system 100 may include a central air handlingunit 120 and an air treatment system 150. The air treatment system 150may be located upstream of the air handling unit 120 or downstream ofthe unit 120, as shown in FIG. 1. The air handling unit 120 and airtreatment system 150 may be in fluid communication with each other, aswell as human-occupied space 110, via a network of ducts 160. In someembodiments, the amount of indoor air that flows into and out of the airtreatment system 150 may be automatically and/or manually controlled byone or more valves. The valves may be positioned within the ducts 160upstream and/or downstream of the air treatment system 150. In someembodiments, the valves may serve to isolate the air treatment system150 from the rest of the system 100 such that there is no fluidcommunication between the system 100 and air treatment system 150 andair flow into and out of the system 150 is substantially stopped.

As shown in FIG. 1, indoor air may flow into the ducts 160 as return airreceived from one or more intakes 170 (e.g., vents and/or ducts) ofhuman-occupied space 110 and flow toward air handling unit 120, asindicated by arrow 130. Air handling unit 120 may include, among otherthings, a blower for circulating air through the ducts 160 and into andout of human-occupied space 110 and heating or cooling elements andfilter racks or chambers for heating, cooling and cleaning the air. Airreleased from the air handling unit 120 may be referred to as supplyair, the flow of which is denoted in FIG. 1 by arrows 140. In someembodiments of the present disclosure, the one or more valves of thesystem 100 and/or air treatment system 150 may be adjusted to allow someor all of the supply air to be diverted to the air treatment system 150and thereafter recombined with the main flow of supply air flowingtowards human-occupied space 110, as denoted by arrows 140. Embodimentsof the air treatment system 150 of the present disclosure may beconfigured to remove unwanted gases, vapors and contamination, includingwithout limitation volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and CO₂ producedwithin human-occupied space 110 by human occupants. Other contaminantgases found within human-occupied space 110 that may be removed by airtreatment system 150 may include without limitation carbon monoxide,sulfur oxides and/or nitrous oxides. Some embodiments of system 100 maybe configured with an air treatment system 150 capable of removingenough contaminants from the circulating air received fromhuman-occupied space 110 so as to reduce or eliminate the need toreplace any of the circulating air within system 100 with makeup airfrom outside the building, vehicle or other structure.

According to some embodiments, air treatment system 150 may removecontaminants from the circulating indoor air received fromhuman-occupied space 110 by forcing the air to flow through one or moreadsorbent materials positioned within air treatment system 150. In someembodiments, one or more adsorbent materials may be oriented within theair treatment system 150 to provide substantially parallel flow pathsthrough which the air may be directed. As the circulating indoor airflows through the one or more adsorbent materials, molecules of one ormore contaminants within the air may be retained and captured by andwithin the adsorbent material(s). Adsorbent materials may include, butare not limited to, zeolites and other molecular sieves, activatedcharcoal, silica gel, porous alumina and metal-organic-frameworkmaterials.

In some embodiments, one or more of the adsorbent materials may beregenerated. More specifically, as contaminants accumulate on thesurface of an adsorbent material, that material may eventually becomesaturated with contaminants such that additional contaminants cannot beadsorbed. The total amount of contaminant(s) captured by an adsorbentmaterial prior to saturation may depend on the size, thickness and/orvolume of the adsorbent material included within air treatment system150, as well as many other parameters, including without limitation, thetype of adsorbent, the species and concentration of contaminants and thetemperature. Upon saturation, embodiments of the present disclosure maybe configured to regenerate or remove the contaminants from theadsorbent material. Some embodiments may regenerate an adsorbentmaterial using thermal swing desorption and/or pressure swingdesorption. Such regeneration may cause the adsorbent material torelease trapped contaminants by elevating the temperature of theadsorbent material and/or flowing a relatively inert purge gas throughthe adsorbent material. In some embodiments, the adsorbent materials ofthe present disclosure may be regenerated within the air treatmentsystem 150 without being removed.

Embodiments of the adsorbent materials used in the air treatment modulesand systems of the present disclosure may be configured in variousshapes and sizes according to design requirements. In some embodiments,an adsorbent material may be configured as a sheet of material generallysquare and/or rectangular in shape. The sheet of adsorbent material maybe formed entirely of adsorbent material and hardened to provide a rigidsheet of adsorbent material and/or may be included within a rigidsupport frame. In some embodiments, the adsorbent material be sprayed,sprinkled or otherwise attached to a porous rigid support sheet ofmaterial such as a screen. Specific dimensions of the adsorbent materialmay depend upon and vary according to the requirements of the HVACsystem within which the air treatment system 150 is incorporated.

In some embodiments, one or more inserts of adsorbent material withinair treatment system 150 may be relatively thin to eliminate the need touse large pressures to force air through the adsorbent material. On theother hand, those same embodiments may also require that the adsorbentmaterial not be too thin so as to reduce its ability to sufficientlycapture and retain contaminants. Furthermore, if an insert of adsorbentmaterial is too thin there may also be insufficient adsorbent materialmass to collect the required amount of contaminants over extendedperiods of time, especially if one of the targeted contaminants (likeCO₂) occurs in relatively large amounts. Accordingly, the size, shapeand number of inserts of adsorbent material used with an embodiment ofthe air treatment system 150 may be determined based on balancingvarious factors including, but not limited to, flow impedance, pressuregradient, adsorbent capacity and physical arrangement.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may achieve desired flowthroughput and impedance requirements by arranging two or more insertsof adsorbent material in a substantially parallel flow configuration. Inparallel flow configurations of the present disclosure, air streamsthrough the two or more inserts may contribute additively to produce theoverall flow of air through the air treatment system. In someembodiments, the size of the one or more inserts which include adsorbentmaterial may be configured for easy transport and manual installation byhuman operators. Some embodiments of the inserts may be configured in asheet-like form. For example, the present disclosure provides forgenerally rectangular inserts of adsorbent material which may be lessthan 1.5 meters in length per side and weigh no more than a few tens ofkilograms. Some embodiments may use thin inserts of adsorbent materialto avoid excessive air flow resistance. For example, insert thicknessmay be no more than a few centimeters, according to some embodiments.Inserts according to the present disclosure may also weigh approximately10 kg each. In the case of packed zeolite, which has an approximatedensity of 1 g/cm³, a 10 kg insert could be approximately 70 cm×70 cm×2cm. Forty inserts of this size may represent a total surface area of 20m² and the need to have air flowing through forty inserts in asubstantially parallel configuration may require an extremely efficientarrangement, as explained in more detail below.

Embodiments of the air treatment system 150 may include two or more airtreatment modules (see, e.g., FIG. 2) arranged vertically and/orhorizontally for accommodating higher throughputs of circulating indoorair by providing two or more inserts of adsorbent material in parallel.Each air treatment module may have one or more inserts of adsorbentmaterial. Embodiments of the present disclosure may configure thegeometric layout of the inserts of adsorbent material in a highlycompact arrangement to provide numerous, possibly hundreds, of insertsof adsorbent material in a scalable and relatively discreet footprint.

Advantages associated with arranging numerous inserts of adsorbentmaterial in a parallel and compact configuration may be appreciated byconsidering the actual amount of adsorbent material and air flowrequired in an average office building. Under normal conditions, anaverage human may produce approximately 40-50 grams of CO₂ per hour. Tocounteract this accumulation of CO₂, an air treatment system of an HVACsystem for a 200-person human-occupied space may be designed to adsorband remove approximately 10 kg of CO₂ per hour. Because the density ofCO₂ is about 2 kg/m³, the volume of CO₂ in this example would equal 5m³. Thus, if the percentage of CO₂ in the air is to be kept below 0.1%,the air treatment system would have to scrub the equivalent of at least5,000 m³ of indoor air every hour to remove the 5 m³ of CO₂ from thehuman-occupied space.

Although molecular sieves have been known to adsorb up to 20% of theirweight in CO₂ under normal temperature and high concentrationconditions, in reality it is more proper to assume a smaller capacitydue to a variety of factors, including limited range of temperatureswing, low concentration conditions, the presence of humidity and theaccumulation of contaminants. An adsorption capacity of 5-10% of theadsorbent mass per cycle is common, although for some adsorbents andconditions smaller numbers could be more realistic. Thus, an insert ofadsorbent material may be dimensioned to collect the amount of CO₂created within a single adsorption-desorption cycle. An air treatmentsystem designed for continuous 2-hour operation and regeneration cyclesat 10 kg per hour of CO₂, would require 400 kg of adsorbent, and more ifthe adsorption capacity is lower than 5%.

FIG. 2a shows an embodiment of an air treatment module 200 according tothe present disclosure. The air treatment module 200 may include asupport frame 240 and, in some embodiments, be generally configured as arectangular prism, as shown in FIG. 2a . The support frame 240 may haveside walls 242, an inlet end wall 244, outlet end wall 245, a top panel246 and a bottom panel 248. In some embodiments, the support frame 240,as well as the support frames for any air treatment module of thepresent disclosure, may be formed out of a single monolithic panel ofmaterial or by rigidly joining the various panels (242, 244, 245, 246,248) together. The support frame 240, as well as the support frames forany air treatment module of the present disclosure, may be made from anyone or more suitable materials, including without limitation, metal,fiberglass or plastic. The support frame 240 may also include one ormore air inlets 210. Air inlet 210 may be formed within inlet end wall244 or, in some embodiments, may be formed by and between inlet end wall244, side walls 242 and top panel 246 or bottom panel 248. That is,inlet end wall 244 may extend only partially along the height, H, of thesupport frame 240. The support frame 240 may also include one or moreair outlets 220. Air outlet 220 may be formed within outlet end wall 245or, in some embodiments, may be formed by and between outlet end wall245, side walls 242 and top panel 246 or bottom panel 248. That is,outlet end wall 245 may extend only partially along the height, H, ofthe support frame 240. The embodiment of the air treatment module 200shown in FIG. 2a includes one air inlet 210 formed (e.g., machined) ininlet end wall 244 and one air outlet 220 formed (e.g., machined) inoutlet end wall 245. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 2a , the airinlet 210 may be formed in the inlet end wall 244 toward the top panel246 and the air outlet 220 may be formed in the outlet end wall 245toward the bottom panel 248, such that the air inlet 210 and air outlet220 are offset from each other.

Embodiments of the air treatment module 200 may also include an insert230. The insert 230 may be positioned partially or entirely within thesupport frame 240 and, in some embodiments, may be arranged in asheet-like form. In some embodiments, the insert 230 may traverse theentirely length, L, of the support frame 240 and/or the entire width, W,of the support frame 240. In some embodiments, the insert 230 may bepositioned substantially at the midpoint of the height, H, of thesupport frame 240, as shown in FIG. 2a . While FIG. 2a shows insert 230oriented substantially parallel to the top panel 246 and/or bottom panel248 of the support frame 240, embodiments of the present disclosurecontemplate various orientations of the insert 230 within the supportframe 240. The insert 230 may be formed as an integral portion of thesupport frame 240 or may be removably inserted into the support frame240, such as by sliding the insert 230 into the support frame 240 from aside or an end of the frame 240. In such embodiments, a side wall 242,inlet end wall 244 and/or outlet end wall 245 may be removable toprovide an opening for insert 230 to be inserted and/or removed asneeded. The insert 230 may be held within support frame 240 by anysuitable means, including without limitation, clips attached to, orchannels or tracks formed in, the side walls 242, inlet end wall 244and/or outlet end wall 245. Such configurations may also apply to anyinserts and support frames of any embodiments of the present disclosure.

The insert 230 may be and/or include one or more adsorbent materialsthrough which circulating indoor air passes, according to embodiments ofthe present disclosure. In some embodiments, the insert 230 may be aporous material, such as a rigid screen or tray, to which one or moreadsorbent materials may be attached or otherwise supported by. In someembodiments, the insert 230 may be a rigid body of one or more adsorbentmaterials.

In operation, circulating indoor air from a human-occupied space (seeFIG. 1) may be caused to enter the air treatment module 200 at air inlet210 from a duct (see FIG. 1), flow through insert 230 and exit airtreatment module 200 at air outlet 220. According to the embodimentshown in FIG. 2a , because the outlet end wall 245 is closed above theinsert 230, the circulating indoor air entering the air inlet 210 isforced to flow through the insert 230 to reach the air outlet 220. Asthe circulating indoor air flows through insert 230, it intimatelycontacts the one or more adsorbent materials and one or more targetedcontaminants are removed from the circulating indoor air by theadsorbent material.

FIG. 2b shows an air treatment system 285 having a configuration ofeleven air treatment modules 200 stacked vertically. The air treatmentmodules 200 may be arranged to create parallel air flow paths orchannels. In some embodiments, the air outlets 220 of each air treatmentmodule 200 may feed into a common outlet plenum 270. A common inletplenum (not shown) may be provided at the air inlets 210 to feed eachair treatment module 200 with circulating indoor air. Some embodimentsof the air treatment system 285 may include connectors 290 which extendbetween the air inlets 210 and air outlets 220 and the common inletplenum (not shown) and common outlet plenum 270, respectively.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of an air treatment module 300 having asupport frame 340 and an insert 330 positioned within support frame 340.The support frame 340 may have side walls 342, an inlet end channel 344,an outlet end channel 345, a top panel 346 and a bottom panel 348. Anair inlet 310 may be formed directly below the inlet end channel 344 byand between the side walls 342, inlet end channel 344 and the bottompanel 348. An air outlet 320 may be formed directly above the outlet endchannel 345 by and between the side walls 342, outlet end channel 345and the top panel 346. The inlet end channel 344 may be configured aspart of the top panel 346 or as a separate component rigidly attached tothe top panel 346. The outlet end channel 345 may be configured as partof the bottom panel 348 or as a separate component rigidly attached tothe bottom panel 348. In FIG. 3, a side wall 342 is removed for purposesof illustrating the arrangement of insert 330 within the support frame340. As shown in FIG. 3, the insert 330 may be positioned on an anglerelative to the top panel 346 and/or bottom panel 348. In someembodiments, the insert 330 may be removably inserted into the supportframe 340 and sized appropriately so as to be held in place within thesupport frame 340 by inlet end channel 344 and outlet end channel 345,as FIG. 3 illustrates. Insert 330 may be arranged in a sheet-like form.

In operation, circulating indoor air from a human-occupied space (seeFIG. 1) may be caused to enter the air treatment module 300 at air inlet310 from a duct (see FIG. 1), flow through insert 330 and exit the airtreatment module 300 at the air outlet 320. As shown in FIG. 3, theorientation of the insert 330 within the support frame 340 blocks theflow path of the circulating indoor air entering the air inlet 310 tocause the air to flow through the insert 330 to reach the air outlet320. As the air flows through insert 330, it intimately contacts one ormore adsorbent materials included within or on insert 330 and one ormore targeted contaminants are removed from the air. As shown in FIG. 3,the air inlet 310 and the air outlet 320 are not offset vertically fromeach other as in the embodiment of FIG. 2a . In some embodiments,because it may be necessary to arrange a large number of air treatmentmodules 300 together, the height, H, of each air treatment module 300may be minimized by adjusting the angle of the insert 330 within thesupport frame 340. The insert 330 may be inserted and/or removed throughan opening in one or both of the side walls 342 or by removing a sidewall 342, an inlet end channel 344 or an outlet end channel 345.

FIGS. 4a and 4b show an embodiment of an air treatment module 400according to the present disclosure. The air treatment module 400 mayinclude a support frame 440 having side walls 442, a top panel 446 and abottom panel 448. In some embodiments, the air treatment module 400 mayhave two or more inserts 430 positioned partially or entirely within thesupport frame 440 and traversing substantially the entire length, L, andwidth, W, of the support frame 440. Inserts 430 may be arranged,according to some embodiments, in a sheet-like form, as shown in FIGS.4a and 4b . In some embodiments, the two or more inserts 430 may besubstantially parallel to each other and include one or more adsorbentmaterials. The inserts 430 may be held in position within the supportframe 440 by tabs 450 formed on the side walls 442 of the support frame440 and/or by inlet end baffles 411 and outlet end baffles 421. Someembodiments of the module 400 may position two or more inserts 430within the support frame 440 in an orientation substantially parallel tothe top panel 446 and/or bottom panel 448 of the air treatment module400. An air inlet 410 may be formed by and between the side walls 442and the inserts 430, as shown in FIG. 4a . Two or more air outlets 420may be formed by and between the side walls 442, top panel 446, bottompanel 448 and inserts 430, as shown in FIG. 4b . In some embodiments,one or more inlet end baffles 411 may be configured between the inserts430 and the top panel 446 and bottom panel 448 and the side walls 442,as shown in FIG. 4a . In some embodiments, one or more outlet endbaffles 421 may be configured between the inserts 430 and the top panel446 and bottom panel 448 and the side walls 442, as shown in FIG. 4b .The baffles (411, 421) may be integrally formed as part of the sidewalls 442, top panel 446 and/or bottom panel 448 or may be separatecomponents rigidly attached to the side walls 442, top panel 446 and/orbottom panel 448.

In operation, circulating indoor air from a human-occupied space (seeFIG. 1) may be caused to enter the air treatment module 400 at air inlet410 from a duct (see FIG. 1), flow through inserts 430 and exit the airtreatment module 400 at air outlets 420. As shown in FIGS. 4a and 4b ,the side walls 442 and outlet end baffle 421 cooperate to provide aclosed flow path into which the circulating air enters after passingthrough air inlet 410. As a result, the circulating indoor air is forcedto flow upward or downward through the inserts 430 to reach the airoutlets 420. In other words, on the inlet side, the air is only allowedto flow into the space between the inserts 430 where a common inletplenum (not shown) may be placed but cannot exit the air treatmentmodule 400 between the inserts 430 because the other end is blocked byoutlet end baffle 421. However, because there are air outlets 420 aboveand below the inserts 430, the air is forced to flow through the inserts430, whereby contaminants in the air are captured and retained by theadsorbent material(s) of inserts 430. In some embodiments, as shown inFIGS. 4a and 4b , the air flow paths within the air treatment module 400may be substantially parallel to each other.

FIGS. 5a and 5b show an embodiment of an air treatment module 500according to the present disclosure. The air treatment module 500 mayinclude a support frame 540 having side walls 542, a top panel 546 and abottom panel 548. In some embodiments, the air treatment module 500 mayhave two or more inserts 530 positioned partially or entirely within thesupport frame 540 and traversing substantially the entire length, L, andwidth, W, of the support frame 540. Inserts 530 may be arranged,according to some embodiments, in a sheet-like form. In someembodiments, the two or more inserts 530 may be substantially parallelto each other and include one or more adsorbent materials. The inserts530 may be held in position within the support frame 540 by and betweentabs 550 (see FIG. 5b ) formed on the side walls 542 of the supportframe 540 and inlet end baffles 511 and outlet end baffles 521. Someembodiments of the module 500 may position two or more inserts 530within the support frame 540 in an orientation substantially parallel tothe top panel 546 and/or bottom panel 548 of the air treatment module500. Two or more air inlets 510 may be formed by and between the sidewalls 542, top panel 546, bottom panel 548 and inserts 530, as shown inFIG. 5a . Two or more air outlets 520 may be formed by and between theside walls 542, top panel 546, bottom panel 548 and inserts 530, asshown in FIG. 5b . In some embodiments, two or more inlet end baffles511 may be configured between the side walls 542, top panel 546, bottompanel 548 and inserts 530, as shown in FIG. 5a . In some embodiments,one or more outlet end baffles 521 may be configured between the sidewalls 542, top panel 546, bottom panel 548 and inserts 530, as shown inFIG. 5b . The baffles (511, 521) may be integrally formed as part of theside walls 542, top panel 546 and/or bottom panel 548 or may be separatecomponents rigidly attached to the side walls 542, top panel 546 and/orbottom panel 548.

In operation, circulating indoor air from a human-occupied space (seeFIG. 1) may be caused to enter the air treatment module 500 at air inlet510 from a duct (see FIG. 1), flow through inserts 530 and exit the airtreatment module 500 at air outlets 520. As shown in FIGS. 5a and 5b ,the side walls 542 and outlet end baffle 521 may cooperate to provide aclosed flow path into which the circulating indoor air enters afterpassing through air inlet 510. As a result, the air is forced to flowupward or downward through at least the inserts 530 directly above andbelow the closed flow path to reach one or more of the air outlets 520.In other words, air flows into the air inlets 510 from a common inletplenum (not shown) and into parallel flow paths from between the inserts530. Because the parallel flow paths between the inserts 530 areenclosed by side walls 542 and outlet end baffles 521, the air is forcedto flow upward and downward through adjacent pairs of inserts 530 andout one or more of the air outlets 520, whereby contaminants in the airare captured and retained by the adsorbent material of inserts 530.Thus, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, such asthe air treatment module 500 shown in FIGS. 5a and 5b , a large numberof inserts including one or more adsorbent materials for removingcontaminants can be provided within a compact space, creating a largenumber of parallel flow paths with a large total effectivecross-sectional area of adsorbent material through which large volumesof circulating air can pass.

FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of an air treatment module 600 according tothe present disclosure. Air treatment module 600 may include a supportframe 640 having side walls 642, a top panel 646, a bottom panel 648 anda back panel (not shown). In some embodiments, the support frame 640 maybe divided by a partition 670 located at approximately the midpoint ofthe width, W, of the support frame 640 or at some other position alongthe width, W, of the support frame 640. Some embodiments of the airtreatment module 600 may be configured with one or more air inlets 610and one or more air outlets 620 located on the same side of the module600, as shown in FIG. 6. In some embodiments, the air treatment module600 may have two or more inserts 630 positioned partially or entirelywithin the support frame 640 and to one side of partition 670 to formthe one or more air inlets 610. Inserts 630 may be arranged, accordingto some embodiments, in a sheet-like form. Inserts 630 may traversesubstantially the entire length, L, and width, W, of the support frame640. In such embodiments, the inserts 630 may have a notch or cut-out toaccommodate the partition 670. In some embodiments, the inserts 630 maytraverse the entire length, L, but extend only from a side wall 642 tothe partition 670. In some embodiments, one insert may extend the entirewidth, W, of the support frame 640 and one insert may extend onlybetween a side wall 642 and the partition 670.

The two or more inserts 630 may be substantially parallel to each otherand/or the top panel 646 and/or bottom panel 648 of the module 600 andinclude one or more adsorbent materials. Inserts 630 may be maintainedwithin position in the support frame 640 by and between tabs 650 formedon the side walls 642 of the support frame 640 and inlet end baffles 611and outlet end baffles 621, as shown in FIG. 6. Some embodiments of themodule 600 may position two or more inserts 630 within the support frame640 in a substantially horizontal orientation relative to the length, L,of the air treatment module 600. Two or more air inlets 610 may beformed by and between a side wall 642, partition 670, top panel 646,bottom panel 648 and/or inserts 630, as shown in FIG. 6. Two or more airoutlets 620 may be formed by and between a side wall 642, partition 670,top panel 646, bottom panel 648 and/or inserts 630, as shown in FIG. 6.In some embodiments, two or more inlet end baffles 611 may be positionedbetween a side wall 642, the partition 670, top panel 646, bottom panel648 and/or inserts 630, as shown in FIG. 6. In some embodiments, one ormore outlet end baffles 621 may be configured between a side wall 642,the partition 670, top panel 646, bottom panel 648 and/or inserts 630,as shown in FIG. 6. The baffles (611, 621) may be integrally formed aspart of the side walls 642, top panel 646 and/or bottom panel 648 or maybe separate components rigidly attached to the side walls 642, top panel646, partition 670 and/or bottom panel 648.

In operation, circulating indoor air from a human-occupied space (seeFIG. 1) may be caused to enter the air treatment module 600 at air inlet610 from a duct (see FIG. 1), flow through inserts 630 and exit the airtreatment module 600 at air outlets 620. As shown in FIG. 6, the sidewalls 642 and outlet baffle 621 cooperate to provide a closed flow pathbetween the inserts 630 into which the circulating indoor air entersafter passing through air inlet 610. As a result, the air is forced toflow upward or downward through the inserts 630 at least directly aboveand below the closed flow path. In some embodiments, because inlet endbaffles 611 may be positioned on the inlet side between partition 670and a side wall 642, the air that has passed through the inserts 630 isdirected toward and out of the air outlets 620. This configuration andother similar embodiments may be useful in various circumstances,including but not limited to when the overall system layout requires acommon inlet plenum and common outlet plenum to be adjacent to eachother along the same side of an arrangement of air treatment modules. Insome embodiments, placing the plenums together on the same side of theair treatment module may make the inlets and/or outlets on the oppositeside of the air treatment module 600 available to be used forregeneration or provides access for service and/or maintenance.

As with embodiments of the air treatment module 200, embodiments of theair treatment modules 300, 400, 500 and 600 may also be arrangedvertically and/or horizontally. For example, FIG. 7 shows an embodimentof a hybrid arrangement 700 of air treatment modules where the insertsare oriented vertically rather than horizontally. While the principle ofoperation and air flow patterns are substantially the same as modulesemploying horizontally-oriented inserts, the vertical orientation maydiffer from a mechanical standpoint. That is, vertical inserts may haveseveral potential advantages, including that the inserts are less likelyto bow in the middle due to their own weight and, because verticalinserts stand side-by-side rather than on top of each other, a largenumber of inserts will not have to create a tall vertical stack. A tallvertical stack has several mechanical drawbacks, including but notlimited, difficult access to the upper modules for service andmaintenance and a large weight load on the lower modules in the stackdue to cumulative weight. There may also be less temperature andpressure variations in a horizontal arrangement. On the other hand,horizontal arrangements require a larger footprint which may not beavailable or desirable.

FIG. 8 shows an embodiment of a hybrid arrangement 800 of air treatmentmodules where the inserts are oriented horizontally but stacked invertical columns joined to each other side-by-side. The choice betweenvertically or horizontally oriented inserts may be made with respect toany of the air treatment module embodiments discussed herein.

The integration of multiple air treatment modules of the presentdisclosure into an HVAC system may be achieved by attaching the modulesto a common inlet plenum and/or a common outlet plenum, either or bothof which may include a combination of valves and/or shutters, as well asfans or blowers, to control the flow of air during one of three possiblemodes of operation. More specifically, in some embodiments, an airtreatment module and/or arrangement of air treatment modules (e.g., avertical stack) according to the present disclosure may have at leastthree modes of operation including (1) active adsorption mode, (2)desorption/regeneration mode and/or (3) shutdown or disconnect. In mode(1), indoor air may flow from the ducts (see FIG. 1) into the airtreatment system, through the air treatment modules and back into theducts. In this mode, contaminants may be captured and retained by theadsorbent materials within the air treatment modules and the treated airmay be returned to the ducts of the HVAC system.

In mode (2), the air treatment modules may be arranged for regenerationby heat or another form of energy or by pressure swing desorption, tocause the release of contaminants captured and retained within theadsorbent material. In some embodiments, contaminants that are releasedthrough regeneration may be removed from the air treatment system byflowing purge gas or by pumping away the released gases and disposing ofthe contaminants outside the building, vehicle or other structure. Someembodiments may heat the adsorbent materials by flowing heated purge gasthrough the air treatment system and subsequently directing the heatedpurge gas to flow outside. The purge gas may be heated inside the plenumor externally using any available heat source, including withoutlimitation solar energy, electric, gas, oil, hot water and/or so-calledwaste heat, for example heat from compressors or engines. In someembodiments, a combination of two or more such heat sources may be usedto achieve the required performance and economic objectives underchanging conditions.

In mode (3), the air treatment modules may be disconnected from the HVACsystem and from the source of purge gas, by closing any interconnectingvalves or shutters. Disconnection and/or isolation of the air treatmentsystem from the HVAC system may be necessary, for example, when the airtreatment system is undergoing maintenance and/or repair. Anotherpossible mode of operation, mode (4), may exist in some embodiments andbe referred to as a “cool down” mode, where a regenerated air treatmentsystem is allowed to cool down, e.g., with or without external air flow,before being reconnected to the HVAC system to prevent unwanted heatingof internal air by the still-warm, regenerated air treatment system.

FIG. 9 shows an embodiment of an air treatment system 900 configuredwith a stack of air treatment modules 950, a common inlet plenum 975 anda common outlet plenum 995. In some embodiments, such as the one shownin FIG. 9, the common inlet plenum 975 and common outlet plenum 995 maybe arranged on opposite sides of the vertical stack formed by the airtreatment modules 950. The common inlet plenum 975 and common outletplenum 995 may each be sealed off at the top of the vertical stack. Inoperation, circulating indoor air 902 may enter at the bottom of thecommon inlet plenum 975 and flow into the air inlets (not shown) of eachof the air treatment modules 950. Inside the modules 950, thecirculating indoor air 902 may be caused to pass through one or moreinserts included within each of the modules 950, exit the air outlets(not shown) in each of the air treatment modules 950 and flow into thecommon outlet plenum 995 as supply air 904. The supply air 904 isdirected downwardly to the bottom of the common outlet plenum 995 andrejoins the main air flow of the HVAC system. The velocity and amount ofair flow 902 entering the common inlet plenum 975 and supply air 904exiting the common outlet plenum 995 may be managed by a central airhandling unit (not shown here) having fans, valves, shutters and othercontrols that govern the operation of the unit.

As shown in FIG. 10, some embodiments of the present disclosure mayarrange the common inlet plenum 1075 and common outlet plenum 1095 onthe same side of the stack, for example, when the air treatment modules1050 are configured similar to those depicted in FIG. 6. As shown inFIG. 11, some embodiments of the present disclosure may involve ahorizontal air treatment system having a multiple vertically-orientedair treatment modules 1150 joined together. In such embodiments, commoninlet plenum 1175 and common outlet plenum 1195 may be positionedhorizontally as well.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure may be directed to an airtreatment module 1200 that includes a support frame 1240 having sidewalls 1242, a top panel 1246 and a bottom panel 1248. The module 1200may also include two or more inserts 1230 oriented at angles within thesupport frame 1240 relative to the top panel 1246 and/or bottom panel1248. In some embodiments, adjacent inserts 1230 may contact each otheralong an edge of the insert 1230. Some embodiments of inserts 1230 maybe arranged in a sheet-like form. Inserts 1230 may be held in placewithin the support frame 1240 by tabs or channels (not shown). Thesupport frame 1240 may have an inlet end 1270 that is completely openand an outlet end 1280 that is completely open. The orientation of theinserts 1230 may form air inlets 1210 and air outlets 1220, as shown inFIG. 10. The inserts 1230 may be removably inserted into the supportframe 1240 from one of the ends of the support frame 1240 or from a sideby removing a side wall 1242.

In operation, circulating indoor air from a human-occupied space (seeFIG. 1) may be caused to enter the air treatment module 1200 at the airinlets 1210 from a duct (see FIG. 1), flow through the inserts 1230which form each air inlet 1210 and exit the air treatment module 1200 atthe air outlets 1220. As shown in FIG. 10, each pair of angled inserts1230 within the support frame 1240 form an air inlet 1210 and, at thesame time, blocks the flow path of the circulating indoor air enteringthat air inlet 1210. As a result, the air is caused to flow eitherupward or downward through one of the two inserts 1230 which form theair inlet 1210 through which the air entered the air treatment module1200. As the air flows through the inserts 1230, it intimately contactsone or more adsorbent materials of insert 1230 and one or more targetedcontaminants are removed from the air. As with all the previouslydescribed air treatment module embodiments, embodiments of air treatmentmodule 1200 may be arranged to form an air treatment system of multipleair treatment modules.

Some embodiments of the air treatment systems described herein accordingto the present disclosure may comprise two or more separate verticalstacks or horizontal arrangements that may be connected to a commonplenum but operated and shuttered independently. Such embodiments allowone (or more) air treatment systems to undergo regeneration or shutdownwhile another air treatment system is still actively treating the airflow, thus providing uninterrupted service. The common plenum may bedesigned to automatically switch between vertical stacks or horizontalarrangements by opening and closing the appropriate valves, shuttersand/or blowers, as well as any other elements used to control air flowand temperature. Some embodiments of the air treatment systems accordingto the present disclosure may have sensors and gauges, including but notlimited to CO₂ meters, thermometers, flow meters and pressure gaugesused to monitor system functionality and trigger automatic switchingbetween modes of operation. One of switching function include withoutlimitation turning an air treatment system from active mode toregeneration mode when elevated levels of contaminants are detected atthe air outlets or in the common outlet plenum.

The embodiments set forth in the foregoing description do not representall embodiments consistent with the subject matter described herein.Instead, they are merely some examples consistent with aspects relatedto the described subject matter. Although a few variations have beendescribed in detail above, other modifications or additions arepossible. In particular, further features and/or variations may beprovided in addition to those set forth herein. For example, theembodiments described above may be directed to various combinations andsub-combinations of the disclosed features and/or combinations andsub-combinations of several further features disclosed above. Inaddition, the logic flows depicted in the accompanying figures and/ordescribed herein do not necessarily require the particular order shown,or sequential order, to achieve desirable results. Other embodiments maybe within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An air treatment system for removing contaminantsfrom indoor air, the system comprising: an air treatment module havingone or more first air ports, one or more second air ports, and at leastone insert including an adsorbent material; controls configured to causethe system to operate in at least three operational modes including: anactive adsorption mode in which the adsorbent material of the at leastone insert adsorbs one or more contaminants from an indoor airflow, aregeneration mode for releasing contaminants from the adsorbent materialof the at least one insert when exposed to a purging airflow, and adisconnect mode where substantially no air flows through the module, oneor more valves arranged and configured to direct, during one or anotheroperational mode, at least one of the indoor airflow and the purgingairflow to flow to and from the treatment module via the first air portsand the second air ports; and wherein: during the active adsorptionmode, one of either the first air ports or the second ports isconfigured to receive the indoor air flow and the remaining one of thefirst air ports or the second air ports not receiving the indoor airflowis configured to expel the indoor airflow such that the indoor airflowflows over and/or through adsorbent material of the at least one insert,and during the regeneration mode, one of the first air ports or thesecond air ports is configured to receive the purging airflow and theremaining one of the first air ports or the second air ports isconfigured to expel the purging airflow such that the purging airflowflows over and/or through the adsorbent material of the plurality ofinserts.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one insertcomprises a plurality of inserts.
 3. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising a support frame having one or more structural support membersfor supporting the at least one insert, wherein the one or more firstair ports and the one or more second air ports are formed by the supportframe and the at least one insert.
 4. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising a support frame, the at least one insert positioned withinthe support frame at an angle of less than about 30 degrees relative toair flow paths between the one or more first air ports and the one ormore second air ports.
 5. The system of claim 1, further comprising asupport frame including an inlet side and an outlet side, wherein theone or more first air ports are formed in the inlet side and the one ormore second air ports are formed in the outlet side.
 6. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the one or more first air ports and the one or moresecond air ports are formed adjacent to each other along one side of asupport frame.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the air treatmentmodule is configured to be incorporated within an HVAC system.
 8. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the one or more first air ports and the oneor more second air ports are offset from each other.
 9. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the adsorbent material is selected from the groupconsisting of molecular sieves, zeolite, activated charcoal, silica gel,porous alumina and metal-organic-framework materials.
 10. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the adsorbent material removes at least one of carbondioxide and volatile organic compounds from the indoor air.
 11. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the adsorbent material is heated during theregeneration mode so as to facilitate regeneration of the adsorbentmaterial.
 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the purging airflowreceived during the regeneration mode is heated prior to flowing overand/or through the adsorbent material.
 13. The system of claim 1,further comprising a heating source configured to heat the adsorbentmaterial and/or the purging airflow.
 14. The system of claim 13, whereinthe heating source includes one or more of solar energy, electricenergy, gas, oil, hot water and waste heat.
 15. A method for removingcontaminants from indoor air, comprising: providing a system comprising:a source of indoor air providing an indoor airflow containing one ormore contaminates; a source of purging air configured to provide apurging airflow to release contaminants adsorbed by an adsorbent; an airtreatment module having one or more first air ports, one or more secondair ports, and at least one insert including an adsorbent material;controls configured to cause the system to operate in at least threeoperational modes including: an active adsorption mode in which theadsorbent material of the at least one insert adsorbs one or morecontaminants from an indoor airflow, a regeneration mode for releasingcontaminants from the adsorbent material of the at least one insert whenexposed to an purging airflow, and a disconnect mode where substantiallyno air flows through the module; and one or more valves arranged andconfigured to direct, during one or another operational mode, at leastone of the indoor airflow and the purging air flow to flow to and fromthe module via the first air ports and the second air ports; and uponselection of the active adsorption mode, directing the indoor airflow toone of either the first air ports or the second ports of each module;flowing the indoor airflow over and/or through the adsorption materialof the at least one insert so as to adsorb contaminants thereon, theresulting airflow comprising a scrubbed indoor airflow; directing thescrubbed indoor airflow to the remaining one of the first air ports orthe second air ports not receiving the indoor airflow to expel suchairflow from each module; upon selection of the regeneration mode,directing the purging airflow to one of the first air ports or thesecond air ports of the module; flowing the purging airflow over and/orthrough the adsorption material of the at least one insert so as torelease adsorbed contaminants, the resulting purging airflow containingthe released contaminants being thereafter directed to the remaining oneof the first air ports or the second air ports to expel such airflowfrom each module; and upon selection of the disconnect mode, ceasing theflow of an airflow through the module.
 16. The method of claim 15,wherein the system further comprises a support frame having one or morestructural support members for supporting the at least one insert,wherein the one or more first air ports and the one or more second airports are formed by the support frame and the at least one insert. 17.The method of claim 15, wherein the system further comprises a supportframe, the at least one insert positioned within the support frame at anangle of less than about 30 degrees relative to air flow paths betweenthe one or more first air ports and the one or more second air ports.18. The method of claim 15, wherein the system further comprises supportframe including an inlet side and an outlet side, wherein the one ormore first air ports are formed in the inlet side and the one or moresecond air ports are formed in the outlet side.
 19. The method of claim15, further comprising heating the adsorbent material during theregeneration mode so as to facilitate regeneration of the adsorbentmaterial.
 20. The method of claim 15, further comprising heating thepurging airflow received during the regeneration mode prior to flowingover and/or through the adsorbent material.